The aim of this study was to examine the impact of both organic and inorganic nitrogen fertilizers on the intensity and epidemiological components of Cercospora leaf spot across three different canopies of cotton plants, specifically the variety DP ACALA 90, under field conditions. Fertilizers used in the study included bovine manure, Jatropha curcas seedcake, poultry manure, and urea (the latter serving as a control). These were applied at 20 days after plant emergence and then during the flowering stage until the total nitrogen (N) dose reached 50, 100, 150, or 200 kg N per hectare. The incidence and severity of the disease were assessed starting at the reproductive stage B1 (the first visible flower bud) across the lower, middle, and upper canopies of four cotton plants, with six evaluations conducted over time. To calculate the initial inoculum (Y0) and the disease progress rate (r),...

The Musaceae family is susceptible to Fusarium wilt (Fw), which is considered the most important disease globally, caused by a group of Fusarium species that includes F. oxysporum f. sp. cubense tropical race 4 (FocTR4). Until recently, FocTR4 was not present in Latin America. However, wilting, chlorosis of leaves, and vascular discoloration (typical symptoms of Fw) were observed in at least a hundred Cavendish plants located in Colombia, Peru and Venezuela in 2019, 2021 and 2022, respectively. Normally, the disease is more severe throughout the warmer and rainy months of the year. Since Ecuador is the world's leading exporter of bananas, including plantains, this study aimed to identify agroclimatic favorability zones for FocTR4 potential incidence in the country, testing linear models to evaluate disease occurrence in relation to climatic conditions and map favorability zones. Most of ...

Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis L.) is a crucial crop in Ecuador, considerably affected by black palm weevil Rhynchophorus palmarum L. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) for several years. Despite its importance, the behavior of the black weevil in Ecuador is not well comprehended presently. Therefore, this study aimed to predict infestation patterns of the black palm weevil in Ecuador using a mathematical model based on monitoring data. Data on the number of insects per trap from a commercial oil palm farm in Quinindé, Ecuador, was collected every two weeks for five years (2016-2020) and analyzed using the Classical Fourier (CF) spectrum and the Dickey-Fuller test to determine seasonality. The trend component of the data dropped from 16.33 in January 2017 to 11.96 in January 2019, with a fluctuation ranging from -0.11 to 2.50 observed for the entire data set. The results obtained after fitting th...